Certain surgical procedures such as a subcutaneous nephrostomy (kidney drainage) require that a drainage catheter remain in the patient for an extended period of time. To maintain the catheter indwelling, a skin mounted retention disc, such as are known in the art, is commonly employed. A typical, prior art retention disc has a centrally extending bore so that the drainage catheter may be inserted therethrough and into the skin. Usually, a tie or other mechanical fastener is provided to secure the catheter to the disc. The disc itself is typically secured to the patient by sutures or by an adhesive.
The above described prior art retention disc is believed to be subject to the following disadvantages. Firstly, and most importantly, if a patient, especially a delirious patient, who has a skin mounted retention disc secured to his or her skin either by sutures or adhesives, attempts to separate himself or herself from the drainage bag, it is likely that the skin mounted retention disc will be pulled from the skin before the catheter is dislodged from the drainage bag. Once the skin disc has been pulled from the skin, the skin mounted retention disc must be reattached by the patient's doctor. Secondly, with prior art skin mounted retention discs, separate mechanical fasteners, such as a pull tie, are usually required to secure the catheter directly to the retention disc. The need for a separate fastener to secure the drainage catheter to the retention disc increases the time and effort required to install the catheter and disc.
In contrast, the present invention concerns an improved, skin mounted drainage catheter retention disc which advantageously secures a drainage catheter thereto without the need for separate mechanical fasteners.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved skin mounted drainage catheter retention disc;
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide improved skin mounted drainage catheter retention discs for retaining a drainage catheter indwelling without the need for separate mechanical fasteners;
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an improved skin mounted drainage catheter retention disc which enables the drainage catheter to be advantageously disconnected from its drainage bag upon separation of the catheter from the drainage bag without disturbing the mounting of the retention disc to the skin.